Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Baker Mayfield has shown flashes of how his abilities would translate from the University of Oklahoma to the National Football League, and that flash burned brightest in Sunday’s 28-16 win over the Atlanta Falcons at FirstEnergy Stadium in Cleveland.
Mayfield completed 17 of his 20 throws for 216 yards and a franchise rookie-record-tying three passing touchdowns against the Falcons. At the start of the game against the Falcons in front of the home fans, Mayfield completed 13 consecutive throws.
“I just felt like I was in a great rhythm,” Mayfield said following the win. “We were moving the ball well. I just felt like we were progressing as a team.”
Mayfield had success against the Falcons because of a clean pocket, as for the first time in his NFL career, he went an entire game without being sacked or committing a turnover, and that came in concert with a standout performance from rookie running back Nick Chubb.
Chubb broke free for a 92-yard rushing touchdown and register 176 yards and the one score on 20 carries, an average of 8.8 yards per attempt.
On the way to the career-high 176 rushing yards, Chubb set the franchise record for the longest scoring play, which was the second-longest player by a rookie in the NFL, behind only Pittsburgh Steelers’ Bobby Gage broke a 97-yard score in 1949.
“It is huge,” Mayfield said of allowing no sacks and committing no turnovers. “Obviously, I am very happy about it, but those five guys in front of me are a lot happier, too. They played really, really well today. We are pretty happy about that.
“I think (offensive line) Coach (Bob) Wylie is going to take them to Hyde Park and out for a meal because they had no sacks and 150-plus rushing yards. Like I talked about last week, that was one of the positives was the offensive line play. We built on that this week. They played better. We have to continue to do that.”
In leading the Browns to the victory, Mayfield moved up on the Browns’ all-time lists for passing touchdowns and passing yards by a first-year player.
Currently, Mayfield ranks third for the most passing touchdowns by a Browns rookie in a single season, as in just eight games, he has thrown for 13 scores, just two away from equaling the record set by another No. 1 overall pick, Tim Couch (15 in 1999).
Additionally, Mayfield has the fourth-most passing yards by a Browns rookie, as his completions have gone for 1,984 yards. Former first-round pick Brandon Weeden holds the record with 3,385 yards, which Mayfield is on pace to break by season’s end.
But his sole focus is on doing what is necessary to win games, not rack up individual statistics.
“It comes down to just doing my job,” Mayfield said. “Them saying they trust me enough to let the ball go, I was brought here for a reason so just go do my thing.
“That obviously makes me feel comfortable when they say that. It comes down to me doing my job, getting the ball out of my hands. We did a good job of having guys open, finding the holes in their defense and getting completions.”
